A Complete Unknown, which was part of the 2024 movie schedule, has received great reviews for its portrayal of the singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Critics praised Timothée Chalamet’s take on Dylan and how he navigates the NYC ’60s folk scene while doing a spot on impression. James Mangold, the movie’s director, did his homework for the film and blends fact–with the help of some great resources–and fiction wonderfully. One of the best pulls the director had speaks to his portrayal of Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash’s friendship which comes from the duo’s penpal relationship.
James Mangold is no stranger to a historical musician movie. He actually directed the Cash biopic, Walk the Line back in 2005, and it’s still one of the best music biopics out there. The 61-year-old walked Entertainment Weekly through what was historically accurate and what was embellished in the name of storytelling for cinema. He walked through some major plot points, including Dylan’s love of Guthrie, his relationship with Suze Russo aka Sylvie Russo (Elle Fanning), and the two monumental performers’ friendship. The Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny director had this to say about locating the infamous letters:
I didn’t know anyone had them. I started work on writing this movie, and I called up Jeff Rosen, Bob’s manager. I asked him, ‘Do you have the letters that Johnny Cash wrote to Bob?’ And he goes, ‘Oh yes.’ So, he sent them to me. Those words are exactly those letters. That correspondence comes from Bob’s archives. The very specific line where Johnny says, ‘Bob, track some mud on the carpet,’ that’s literally what Johnny said to Bob in the letters.
Let’s just take a moment for good managers and creatives who go digging. It may seem like an innocuous detail but moments that are pulled from primary sources make the great biopics even more galvanized. Mangold reaching out to Dylan’s manager and injecting realities into the film teaches a rounder image of the time as well as the prolific singer. It’s an opportunity for new generations to connect with the era and for others who are familiar learn some things they may not have known. Mangold provided me with this experience twenty years ago with Johnny Cash and I’m glad he’s at it again (check out CinemaBlend’s A Complete Unknown review here).
Their friendship in the movie is wholesome and wonderful to watch grow and encourage each other in the ways that are true to themselves. I’ve always loved knowing that the two wrote to each other regularly and supported each other in their career, and I’m even happier to have this part of their relationship cemented on film.
Thanks to Mangold and everyone involved in sourcing the sweet BTS items that contributed to the Cash & Dylan relationship and beyond. I know this movie will be on a pretty regular rotation because of their friendship. And, I hope to find some comparable titles this year on the upcoming music biopics list that have the attention to detail that A Complete Unknown has.
A Complete Unknown is playing in theaters now. Check out Mangold’s Walk The Line with a Hulu subscription.